BIRMINGHAM, Alabama -- The former general manager at Birmingham sports-talk stations WJOX FM and AM has filed a wrongful termination lawsuit against his old employer, claiming Cumulus Media fired him six days after he told his superiors he had been diagnosed with congestive heart failure.

Bill Thomas -- who also oversaw the day-to-day operations at four other Cumulus stations in Birmingham, as well as The Paul Finebaum Radio Network -- filed the lawsuit Tuesday in federal court in Birmingham.

Efforts to reach officials with Cumulus Media in Birmingham were not immediately successful this afternoon.

Attorneys for Thomas have requested a jury trial and are asking that Thomas get his old job back, as well as receive back pay from the date of his termination, plus attorney fees and other damages.

Thomas -- who also had been named in a 2011 breach-of-contract lawsuit that WJOX sports-talk host Paul Finebaum filed against Cumulus subsidiary Citadel Broadcasting -- was fired on Feb. 17, 2012, according to his lawsuit.

Six days earlier, the lawsuit says, Thomas had emailed Cumulus chief operating officer John Dickey and human resources manager Malea Turner to tell them he had been diagnosed with congestive heart failure but was still able to perform his duties as general manager. The text of that email is included in Thomas' lawsuit.

"I felt that in the interest of full disclosure you should be fully aware of my health," the email said. "I will appreciate it if you keep the circle of people who are aware of this as small as possible.

"I remain committed to improving the Birmingham market for Cumulus, as well as doing my part to help Cumulus prevail in the legal proceedings with Finebaum should they move forward."

On the day that Dickey and Cumulus co-COO Jon Pinch drove from Atlanta to Birmingham to fire him, Thomas asked Dickey if he had read the email Thomas sent him, the lawsuit says.

"Yeah, yeah . . .," Dickey replied, according to the lawsuit. "We all have health problems as we get older. . . . I have gout."

When Thomas told Dickey that his health problem was more serious than gout, Dickey left the room, the lawsuit says.

In his email to Dickey and Turner, Thomas also said he had previously shared his condition with Finebaum over lunch before Finebaum filed his breach-of-contract lawsuit with Citadel Broadcasting, which was later purchased by Cumulus Media in September 2011.

"I have known Bill for many years and have valued his advice," Finebaum's statement said. "We both regret that we became personally entangled in what was essentially a business dispute with former management and we look forward to repairing our relationship."

While he is now free to sign with other stations in market, Finebaum has yet to agree to a new deal but is believed to be considering returning to WJOX or the Cox Media Group's ESPN 97.3 The Zone, which has been aggressively pursuing Finebaum for more than a year.